O P I N I O N
THE SOAPBOX
Stand up. Speak up. It’s your turn.
A mural showcasing diversity in Manchester is once again on its way to glorious completion. It almost didn’t happen thanks to an online smear campaign headed by Alderman Joe Levasseur.
Mr. Levasseur decided the mural was not to his taste. Mostly because of an unrelated political feud with one of the organizers. So he sent his not insignificant social media following after the project to shut it down. It worked temporarily.
On the MPTV Will and Joe show, Will Infantine referred to the artists as “the slow ones.” Joe made no effort to correct him. It was clear from this conversation it was not only the art they thought was ugly, but the artists themselves.
There’s a word for powerful men who send mobs after marginalized groups. We call them bullies.
Mayor Jay Ruais has been a big supporter of the project, but he has yet to call out Levasseur or Infantine for their aggressive behavior or cruel commentary. If he fails to admonish Mr. Levasseur and Mr. Infantine we can only assume he agrees with them, and people with intellectual disabilities are unwanted in Manchester.
Is team loyalty more important to the mayor than protecting the residents he swore to represent? We will see.
Information on the current status of the project is available here:
Patricia Vincent-Piet lives in Concord and is a person with a disability, family caregiver and advocate.
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